When it comes to lobbying:
Budget bill is treated differently

		Eye on the  Capitol  John Huebscher

The 2005 state budget season officially opened on Feb. 8 when Governor Doyle presented his fiscal blueprint to legislators in a prime time speech at the Capitol.

Between that speech and somewhere in the vicinity of July 1, the legislature refines and alters the governor's budget and enacts its own version.

As with other bills of interest to the Wisconsin Catholic Conference (WCC), the WCC staff will lobby and advocate for and against specific policy positions addressed in the budget. However, unlike most other bills, it is highly unlikely the conference will endorse or oppose the budget bill in its entirety.

Different approach

There are a variety of reasons for this approach.

First and foremost, budgets by their nature focus on spending, not policy. They rarely make new law. As a result, they represent practical judgments as to how much the state can afford to spend to address the many needs that exist.

Second, budgets address a wide range of issues. The budget bill this year runs in excess of 1,100 pages. Documents of such length and complexity have many things to be for and many things to be against.

Some interest groups with a narrow range of concerns may find it practical to evaluate the entire budget on the basis of one or two items. But this is not so easy when one tries to view the budget from the broad perspective of the common good.

Moreover, the budget by design is a short-term document. While legislators enact most laws with the intent of leaving them in place for many years, the budget has a two-year life expectancy. Whether one views a budget as good or bad, legislators don't have to wait too long before they must replace it with a new one.

Moral implications

But while the WCC won't endorse or condemn the budget as a whole, it will address specific budget issues that have moral implications.

WCC will analyze the 2005 budget in light of how it furthers or retreats from the moral priorities for public life enumerated in Faithful Citizenship: (1) Protecting Human Life, (2) Preserving Families and Community, (3) Pursuing Social Justice, and (4)Practicing Global Solidarity, as well as the other documents in which the WCC has addressed public policy concerns.

Complex bill

At this early stage, it appears the budget issues of concern to the WCC will include, funding for programs directed at the needy; biotechnology; the future direction of corrections policy; the future of the Milwaukee parental choice program; public education; and issues related to hunger.

Additional subjects may emerge as the public reads the fine print of the budget and legislators and others offer different proposals that add to or modify the priorities set forth by the governor.

Wading through the complexities of the budget bill and watching the meandering trail of the budget process take time, involve careful study, and committed advocacy. But all these are expected of faithful citizens.

John Huebscher is executive director of the Wisconsin Catholic Conference.

Fruits of ecumenism:
Enjoying impact of Vatican II

		Grand Mom  Audrey  Mettel Fixmer

Has it really been 42 years since Pope John XXIII opened some windows and let that fresh air into the church?

Most of us senior citizens remember so clearly the impact of Vatican II. We recall the pope gathering bishops from all over the world to study the state of the church and how it was or wasn't meeting the needs of its people. They came away from that conclave with radical changes.

Vatican II changes

Priests began offering the Mass in their native tongues instead of Latin. And they faced the congregation for the first time.

We could eat meat on Fridays except in Lent and women didn't have to cover their heads any longer in church.

Something called lay ministry was established, and for the first time laymen and women participated in the celebration of Mass in a very direct way: by reading from the Scriptures and even distributing the Eucharist.

And most astonishing, perhaps, was the idea of ecumenism. We were told to respect people of all faiths.

Parish plight

What got me thinking about Vatican II again? It's the plight of our parish church right now.

We are between the proverbial rock and hard place. We must move out of our current location according to the contract we signed with the buyers agreeing to turn over the land - stripped - by April. The new church and school that we are building across town is not ready for occupancy.

We're close, but not ready to pass the inspection of our City Inspector despite the thousands of hours of volunteer work by our parishioners.

Help from others

So who has come to our rescue? The Protestant churches! Our school children have been holding classes in both a Lutheran church and a Methodist church since Jan. 3 when they had to vacate their school.

Our Saturday and Sunday Masses will be held at J.F. Luther Elementary School beginning Feb. 12 and our weekday Masses will be held at St. Peter's Episcopal Church for the time being.

The reaction of our parishioners is one of deep appreciation for this gesture on the part of our Protestant brothers and sisters. We are thankful that we live in this day of ecumenism, where we can acknowledge that we all worship the same God and we are united by the Christian principle of love-thy-neighbor.

We've come a long way in those 43 years since Vatican II. I can still remember my mother crying when she couldn't attend the wedding of one of my cousins, a Catholic who was being married in a Protestant church.

Interfaith devotion

Today there is a camaraderie among the ministers of various churches. In our town there is an interfaith devotion during Lent in which the churches take turns having a noon service on Wednesdays. People of all faiths are encouraged to attend these. They also unite in social actions such as Meals on Wheels, Food Pantry, etc.

I guess you have to be older to fully appreciate the dramatic changes that the ecumenical movement has wrought. The hospitality, the good will, and the Christian charity we now enjoy with members of all Christian churches was unheard of when we were kids. We have truly reaped the fruits of Vatican II.

Shalom, my friends, shalom!

"Grandmom" likes hearing from other senior citizens who enjoy aging -- contact information.